Attorneys representing former FBI director James Comey are asking a federal judge on Friday to prevent the US justice department from moving forward with a third criminal case against him. The legal challenge addresses allegations regarding a decade-old news media leak that federal authorities previously investigated twice without taking action.
Legal Challenge Over a Decade-Old Leak
Court documents unsealed on Monday revealed that the administration filed a charging document known as a criminal information this month without utilizing a grand jury. The justice department defended this approach as a measure to extend the statutory time limit for obtaining a grand jury indictment. However, defense attorneys argued that the case lacks legal validity.
US district judge Trevor McFadden in Washington, DC, who was appointed by Donald Trump, was scheduled to hear arguments on the matter on Friday. Comey maintains his innocence against the allegations.
The current prosecution stems from an October 2016 article published by The New York Times concerning a confidential court order that directed Yahoo to scan user emails for terms potentially connected to a foreign terrorist organization. The report referenced two anonymous government officials discussing the secret order from the foreign intelligence surveillance court, which Yahoo was prohibited from disclosing publicly.
Previous Investigations and Wider Political Context
Federal authorities initiated an investigation into the disclosure in early 2017, led by prosecutor John Durham. According to a recent court filing by defense lawyers, Durham authored a classified memo in December 2018 advising against criminal charges related to the leak. A subsequent investigation named Tropical Vortex was launched in 2019 by the US attorney’s office for the District of Columbia, but that inquiry concluded in early 2020 without any charges.
Comey served as FBI director after being appointed in 2013 by Barack Obama and held the position when Trump took office. He led the inquiry examining whether the Trump campaign coordinated with Russia during the 2016 election against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. The two men have remained in an ongoing feud since Trump dismissed Comey early in his first term.
Two other legal matters have targeted Comey. A Virginia federal court dismissed a case accusing him of lying to Congress in 2020 after a judge determined the prosecuting attorney was appointed unlawfully. Additionally, a pending indictment accuses Comey of threatening Trump through an Instagram post displaying seashells arranged as “86 47″—referencing slang to get rid of someone and Trump’s status as the 47th president—a case the former FBI director has also moved to dismiss.
